$10,000 NFL Championship Wager Sends Heinz Tomatoes Head-to-Head with Blue Nile Carats; Heinz and Blue Nile Up the Ante with High-Stakes Bling-- Charities to be the Big Winners.

PITTSBURGH & SEATTLE -- In the world of sports, when you're talking diamonds, you're talking baseball. However, in honor of the NFL Championship game in Detroit, pitting the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Seattle Seahawks, Pittsburgh-based H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE:HNZ), maker of the World's Favorite Ketchup(TM) and Seattle-based Blue Nile (Nasdaq:NILE), the leading online retailer of diamonds and fine jewelry, are making it interesting by introducing football diamonds. It's part of their high-stakes wager--and one of their communities will win big.

Mark Vadon, president, CEO and chairman of Blue Nile, has offered Heinz a $10,000 diamond if the Steelers win the game against the Seahawks in Detroit on Feb. 5. In return, Heinz chairman, president and CEO, William R. Johnson, has served up $10,000 worth of tomato products to Blue Nile, including the iconic Heinz(R) Tomato Ketchup, if the Steelers lose.

If the Steelers beat the Seahawks, the really big winner will be The Jerome Bettis Bus Stops Here Foundation. The Foundation, founded by Steelers All-Pro running back, Jerome "the Bus" Bettis, seeks to improve the overall quality of life for troubled and underprivileged children by offering them the opportunity to succeed in life. Heinz will sell the diamond through an online auction to the highest bidder and will donate the proceeds to the Foundation.

Should the Seahawks win, Washington food banks will share in the winnings, as Blue Nile will make a charitable contribution of its tasty, tomato-y winnings by arranging for donations to the Seahawks "Tackle Hunger" Food Drive with Northwest Harvest. As the only statewide hunger relief agency, Northwest Harvest supplies food, without fees of any kind, to more than 300 food banks and meal programs across Washington. Blue Nile will even invite the Seahawks to help deliver the food.

"This is a great opportunity for Heinz and Blue Nile to get involved in the excitement and the fun of the game, while benefiting our respective communities. Everybody wins," said Johnson and Vadon in a joint statement.

ABOUT HEINZ: H.J. Heinz Company, offering "Good Food, Every Day(TM)" is one of the world's leading marketers and producers of branded foods in ketchup, condiments, sauces, meals, soups, seafood, snacks, and infant foods. Heinz satisfies hungry consumers in every outlet, from supermarkets to restaurants to convenience stores and kiosks. Heinz is a global family of leading brands, including Heinz(R) Ketchup, sauces, soups, beans, pasta and infant foods (representing nearly one-third of total sales or close to $3 billion), Ore-Ida(R) French fries and roasted potatoes, Boston Market(R) and SmartOnes(R) meals, and Plasmon(R) baby food. Heinz's 50 companies have number-one or number-two brands in 200 countries, showcased by Heinz(R) Ketchup, The World's Favorite Ketchup(TM). Information on Heinz is available at www.heinz.com/news .

ABOUT BLUE NILE: Founded in 1999, Blue Nile is the leading online retailer of diamonds and fine jewelry. It has built a well-respected brand by providing consumers with a better way to buy diamonds and fine jewelry. Blue Nile has established some of the highest quality standards in the industry and provides consumers with in-depth educational materials and unique online tools that place consumers in control of the jewelry shopping process. The Blue Nile Web site showcases more than 60,000 independently certified diamonds and more than 1,000 styles of fine jewelry at prices significantly below traditional retail. Blue Nile can be found online at www.bluenile.com , www.bluenile.ca and www.bluenile.co.uk . Blue Nile's shares are traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol NILE.